Voice-based AI Agents: Filling the Economic Gaps in Digital Health Delivery

Fuente: arXiv
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Hauptverfasser: Wen, Bo, Wang, Chen, Han, Qiwei, Norel, Raquel, Liu, Julia, Stappenbeck, Thaddeus, Rogers, Jeffrey L.
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2025
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author Wen, Bo
Wang, Chen
Han, Qiwei
Norel, Raquel
Liu, Julia
Stappenbeck, Thaddeus
Rogers, Jeffrey L.
author_facet Wen, Bo
Wang, Chen
Han, Qiwei
Norel, Raquel
Liu, Julia
Stappenbeck, Thaddeus
Rogers, Jeffrey L.
contents The integration of voice-based AI agents in healthcare presents a transformative opportunity to bridge economic and accessibility gaps in digital health delivery. This paper explores the role of large language model (LLM)-powered voice assistants in enhancing preventive care and continuous patient monitoring, particularly in underserved populations. Drawing insights from the development and pilot study of Agent PULSE (Patient Understanding and Liaison Support Engine) -- a collaborative initiative between IBM Research, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and Morehouse School of Medicine -- we present an economic model demonstrating how AI agents can provide cost-effective healthcare services where human intervention is economically unfeasible. Our pilot study with 33 inflammatory bowel disease patients revealed that 70\% expressed acceptance of AI-driven monitoring, with 37\% preferring it over traditional modalities. Technical challenges, including real-time conversational AI processing, integration with healthcare systems, and privacy compliance, are analyzed alongside policy considerations surrounding regulation, bias mitigation, and patient autonomy. Our findings suggest that AI-driven voice agents not only enhance healthcare scalability and efficiency but also improve patient engagement and accessibility. For healthcare executives, our cost-utility analysis demonstrates huge potential savings for routine monitoring tasks, while technologists can leverage our framework to prioritize improvements yielding the highest patient impact. By addressing current limitations and aligning AI development with ethical and regulatory frameworks, voice-based AI agents can serve as a critical entry point for equitable, sustainable digital healthcare solutions.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_16229
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Voice-based AI Agents: Filling the Economic Gaps in Digital Health Delivery
Wen, Bo
Wang, Chen
Han, Qiwei
Norel, Raquel
Liu, Julia
Stappenbeck, Thaddeus
Rogers, Jeffrey L.
Artificial Intelligence
Computers and Society
Emerging Technologies
Human-Computer Interaction
Software Engineering
The integration of voice-based AI agents in healthcare presents a transformative opportunity to bridge economic and accessibility gaps in digital health delivery. This paper explores the role of large language model (LLM)-powered voice assistants in enhancing preventive care and continuous patient monitoring, particularly in underserved populations. Drawing insights from the development and pilot study of Agent PULSE (Patient Understanding and Liaison Support Engine) -- a collaborative initiative between IBM Research, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and Morehouse School of Medicine -- we present an economic model demonstrating how AI agents can provide cost-effective healthcare services where human intervention is economically unfeasible. Our pilot study with 33 inflammatory bowel disease patients revealed that 70\% expressed acceptance of AI-driven monitoring, with 37\% preferring it over traditional modalities. Technical challenges, including real-time conversational AI processing, integration with healthcare systems, and privacy compliance, are analyzed alongside policy considerations surrounding regulation, bias mitigation, and patient autonomy. Our findings suggest that AI-driven voice agents not only enhance healthcare scalability and efficiency but also improve patient engagement and accessibility. For healthcare executives, our cost-utility analysis demonstrates huge potential savings for routine monitoring tasks, while technologists can leverage our framework to prioritize improvements yielding the highest patient impact. By addressing current limitations and aligning AI development with ethical and regulatory frameworks, voice-based AI agents can serve as a critical entry point for equitable, sustainable digital healthcare solutions.
title Voice-based AI Agents: Filling the Economic Gaps in Digital Health Delivery
topic Artificial Intelligence
Computers and Society
Emerging Technologies
Human-Computer Interaction
Software Engineering
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.16229